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Slow clap: Android 6.0 Marshmallow's market share just surpassed that of Android 2.2 Froyo

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By Luis D.

Updated: Dec 02, 2015, 8:20 AM

This header image is so 2010...

Ahh, fragmentation — the dreaded "f-word" of the Android realm! It's been voiced so many times that saying Android devices have an "update problem" pretty much equals climbing the stage to announce the discovery of sliced bread before the non-believing world.

Still, a fun fact is a fun fact any day of the year! Check this out — it's been two months since Android 6.0 Marshmallow's official October 5 release, and the latest operating system version has settled on just about 0.3% of Android devices in circulation. According to the latest data from Google (collected during a 7-day period ending November 2), this is just 0.1% more than the number of devices running Android 2.2 Froyo, the most ancient operating system version that's still supported in the Google Play store app. For the uninitiated, Froyo was released way back in 2010, and it looks just like in the gallery to the right. From today's perspective, Froyo's scant menus represent a true "wah-wah-waaaah" moment in Android's UI design.

Those Marshmallow update troubles aside, the Android version landscape is dominated by Kitkat (4.4), which appeared back in September 2013 and is now present on 37.8% of devices Meanwhile, Android Lollipop 5.0 and 5.1 have reached 15.5% and 10.1% each, and we'd rather not review the percentages of Jelly Bean, Ice Cream Sandwich, and the elderly Gingerbread, because... well, it makes us feel old!

Still, you can check them out yourself in the table below:

Version	Codename	Distribution
2.2	Froyo	0.20%
2.3.3 - 2.3.7	Gingerbread	3.80%
4.0.3 - 4.0.4	Ice Cream Sandwich	3.30%
4.1.x	Jelly Bean	11.00%
4.2.x		13.90%
4.3		4.10%
4.4	KitKat	37.80%
5	Lollipop	15.50%
5.1	Lollipop	10.10%
6	Marshmallow	0.30%

Now, forgive us the temptation, but we couldn't resist taking a peek at Apple's latest iOS version numbers for the sake of comparison. As measured on November 30, iOS 9 and newer are currently on 70% of the many, many iPhones in circulation, while the rest of the percentages are spread between iOS 8 and unspecified earlier versions.

Of course, Apple has the privilege of controlling nearly everything about the iPhone's production and support, which is what makes this wonderful track record possible. Giving credit where is due, Google has been maintaining its Nexus devices in similar quick fashion, but unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the majority of Android device makers out there.

So, which Android version is your smartphone on? Or maybe you have a really old iPhone that's still rocking iOS 6? Tell us, how does it work out for you?

source: Google & Apple

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Luis D. has a multitude of news, features and review articles written for PhoneArena. He adeptly demystifies complex technology topics, such as the development of advanced materials for bendable device displays and the evolution of chipset manufacturing.